


Right in Mind

by aptasi



Category: Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan
Genre: Arguing, F/M, Flirting, Humor, Injury, Protective, Stubborn, Team Up, bond triangle, concussion, warder
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 20:40:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29070438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aptasi/pseuds/aptasi
Summary: Lan and Thom have to team up to get Moiraine to know her limits. Set in Tear, in between books 3 and 4.
Relationships: Moiraine Damodred & Lan Mandragoran, Moiraine Damodred/Thom Merrilin
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	Right in Mind

**Author's Note:**

> Rating is for injury and some blood.

Well, his life was predictably bad at staying unentwined with things, Thom thought, as he settled into his room in the Stone of Tear. Now, here he was, moving in. Half the point of his current never settled lifestyle was to avoid moving into palaces. The other half was to avoid moving into palaces with women he shouldn’t be excited to see. Fantastic bloody job he was doing here. 

Oh well. He still needed to arrange things so that he had stable stands for his instruments and make sure there was nowhere moisture could get in. Might as well work on that while he reflected on his concerning priorities. 

“Gleeman.” The Warder said, stepping through the door and walking up to him. 

Thom humphed. “Why yes, thank you Lan, come in.” 

The Warder glowered. 

“I take it Moiraine knows I’m here.” 

Lan frowned at the lack of a formal title but Thom would burn if he would flaming give it. If the man wanted to refer the to woman he was bonded to with a full honorific every time like he had never even met her, that was his bloody business, but it didn’t mean Thom had to be that stiff and formal. And if Thom knew he was being unfair (Lan didn't always give Moiraine the full title. Why sometimes he even shortened it to an ominous "her"), well he felt he had some right to be petty. 

The Warder still hadn’t spoken. 

‘Well?” Thom demanded. 

“I wonder if might might trouble you for some assistance, Gleeman.” The words came out of Lan as though they were a great effort. 

Thom twisted his eyes suspiciously. “With what, exactly?” 

The Warder took what seemed to be a bracing breath. “When we took the stone, Moiraine Sedai faced two Forsaken. 

“And I hear one of those Forsaken is currently reduced to pattern ash.” Thom said. “The woman seems to have excelled.” It was really concerning that Thom found that so attractive in Moiraine, her ability to reduce evil legends to nothing clean into ten seconds ago.

“The other one threw her into a stone column. She hit her head.” 

“Oh.” His stomach could just stop reacting to that. “What does that have to do with me?” 

“She’s refused to ask for healing for it.” 

“Why?”

Lan sighed. “This is Tear. So there is no abundance of channeling healers. The best healer currently available.” He winced. 

“Nynaeve.” Thom guessed. 

Lan grunted. 

“So she doesn’t want Nynaeve to heal her, and I gather she doesn’t want to rest for days or more like the rest of us mortals.” Thom realized he was starting to pace and made himself stop. There was no space in this room for it anyway. 

“That’s the size of it.” 

“Well that must be lots of fun for you, Lan, with the givens." Thom would never let a woman bond him like that, but if he did, he wouldn't expect to be able to moon over a different woman day and night and have it create no problems. Warders were as flaming off as their women. "But again, what does this have to do with me?” Other than the fact that he’d gone clammy hands worried about her? 

“I wonder if you might talk to her.” Lan muttered. 

“Beg pardon?”

“She respects you.” 

“By the light.” Thom said, his stomach flipping like he used to be able to, “How bad is it?” 

Lan’s face gained a few wrinkles. “By all account he threw her something like two or more thousand span and she slid that many again, and had barely slowed when she impacted the column. She was unconscious for some time and I only knew she was still alive because the bond did not…” He actually winced. 

Warder bonds were a horror in themselves. Thom couldn’t imagine why any man would consent to them. 

Since it happened, she’s been acting as though she’s invincible. Taking meetings, going on excursions, channeling, reading letters from bloody….” he cut off with a growl. 

Interesting that. 

“Working!” Lan summarized. “Not resting at all. And I know, know beyond doubt Gleeman, that she has a split sight headache, roiled stomach, and is dizzy fit to fall, but she will not slow down.” 

“Not good.” Thom muttered. “She’s going to to wreck her head permanently.” 

“You.” Lan’s bicep clenched. “You care about her.” 

“Loaded question.” Thom said. 

“You care about her, enough to help her, this once?” 

Well, he did. 

=----

“Moiraine.” Thom said smoothly. “I hear you’re being woolheaded. Not usually your act, is it?” 

Moiraine glowered at Lan from where she was sitting up in bed, reading what looking like absolutely tiny, and bad, handwriting. Thom couldn’t make it out from upside down, and that was usually one of his skills, so he felt safe calling the thing less that legible. “You brought Thom Merrilin to argue with me?” She said to Lan. 

“You wouldn’t listen to reason.” 

“This,” Thom said, sitting on the edge of the bed near Moiraine’s feet, “is the part where you deny that you’re hurt.” 

She shook her head. “Thom, this needs to get done.” 

“That isn’t the…” Lan muttered. 

If the bloody man were going to demand Thom do something, the least he could do was let him do it. “You know how I know you’re impaired?” Thom said. “You would never take such a fool risk if you were thinking straight. You wouldn’t think the pattern can be bothered to indulge your personal dislikes. You would be taking care of this potential weakness, if you were in your right mind.”

Lan grunted. 

“And he would not have bent to ask me for help of all people if he weren’t scared frozen for you. But tell you what Moiraine I understand how he feels. Because seeing you not realize you can just order Nynaeve, whom you still rank, to heal you and shut up about it scares me.” 

Moiraine blinked.

Thom leaned over the bed and touched his hand to the side of Moiraine’s head. Her breath hitched, which was not what this was flaming about so he could just stop noticing it. Thom slid around to the back of her head, barely touching, and withdrew his hand with old drying blood on it. 

The Aes Sedai frowned. 

Lan shuddered. 

“Your hair’s too pretty to use as a bandage Moiraine,” Thom said gently. 

She stared at him. 

“There are some injuries,” Thom said. “That give you one more tumbling pass, one more soaring aria, before they take the ability forever. The question then is, how sure are you that the last battle’s today or tomorrow?”

In the background, her Warder shifted his weight. 

“Tell you what, Moiraine. Here's how we play it. You can take me handily at stones more times than not, when you're well. Or Lan. Either of us. You know this." It was also bloody impressive to be able to score against Moiraine in that game at all, so he wasn't the least embarrassed about that ratio. 

Moiraine nodded. 

"So one game of stones. Lan and I playing by consensus, which you know will make us weaker than either of us alone, vs you. You win, Lan and I stop bothering you about your head. We win, you follow the usual precautions. No reading, bright lights, intellectual work and so on, for two weeks. Regardless of other consequences."

Her jaw clenched, in that powerful, kind of pretty, way it had of doing that. 

"Since you won't accept healing." Thom added.

The silence could rival any court Thom had served in for chill. 

"Lan Gaidin," Moiraine said finally. "Please ask Nynaeve what she would take in payment to clear my head. I insist upon paying her and not being in her debt. You must make this clear."

Lan grunted. "Not bad, Gleeman." He said and left the room. 

Thom smiled at Moiraine. "Thought you cared more for your schemes than your pride."

She crossed her arms and reclined to a shallower angle with the bed. "The wheel weaves as the wheel wills. And at the moment it seems to enjoy humiliating me."

"You faced two Forsaken. Ended with one Forsaken dead on a cosmic level and a bumped head. Sounds impressive to me."

"I refer to asking for healing."

He tilted his head cannily. "So, every time you helped one of us on the road, you saw yourself as humiliating us?" 

"Do not twist my words Gleeman. I twist them enough." Moiraine ordered. "Besides, if you want a battle of wits, this is hardly a fair fight. Come back tomorrow morning."

Thom smiled and flourished his cloak. "As you command. I look forward to meeting you first thing tomorrow." Then he got out of that room before she could contradict herself.

Or he could find some sense.


End file.
